Les Forges
A food shop, a school and somewhere to eat or drink.
Partly served 40.1/100 · confidence: high· Better served than 43 % of the {n|commune|communes} of a similar size.
Identity
Les Forges (INSEE 88178) is in Vosges (88), part of CA d'Epinal. Population 1,776 (2023). [1]
INSEE density class: Ceintures urbaines (level 4). [2]
Data vintages: INSEE BPE 2025 · INSEE SIRENE 2026-09 · INSEE census (RP) 2023 · INSEE COG 2026 · INSEE density grid 2026.
Permanent link: https://vivantrural.com/en/fr/88178-les-forges
Vitality score
Vitality score 40.1/100 — Partly served (model fr-v0.2).
Confidence: high.
Better served than 43 % of the 10,387 communes of a similar size.
Compare this with communes of a similar size. The score measures how well a place is served relative to its own size band, and larger communes score higher as a rule — so it reads meaningfully against another village, and misleadingly against a town.
Measured but not scored in this model: Market. See the methodology for why.
| Component | Value (0–1) | Weight | Contribution |
|---|---|---|---|
| Daily food | 0.26 | 25 | 6.47 |
| Social | 0.32 | 20 | 6.32 |
| Education | 0.39 | 10 | 3.93 |
| Health | 0.59 | 10 | 5.85 |
| Public & culture | 0.2 | 5 | 0.98 |
| Population trend | 0.57 | 10 | 5.69 |
| Housing mix | 0.97 | 5 | 4.87 |
Services
What is here, at a glance
A food shop, a school and somewhere to eat or drink. [3,4]
3 × Bakery (boulangerie) (BOULANGERIE PATISSERIE MOUGEOT · L'OR FEVE). [3,4]
2 × Restaurant (LA CHOPE · EURL BRICE). [3,4]
1 × Primary school (élémentaire) (ECOLE PRIMAIRE PUBLIQUE). [3]
3 × GP (médecin généraliste) (JEAN FERRETTI, MÉDECIN · MARIE HECKEL, MÉDECIN · DOROTHEE WAGNER, MÉDECIN). [3]
1 × Pharmacy. [3,4]
1 × Post office / agence postale (LES FORGES AP). [3]
1 × Hairdresser (EJERIE). [3,4]
Not counted, because the business register records them as closed: 1 × Pharmacy, 1 × Hairdresser.
Not found in the commune: Butcher (boucherie), Grocery (épicerie / supérette), Supermarket, Café / bar, Nursery school (maternelle), Library. [3,4]
All 25 service types, with per-source counts
| Type | Count | Names | Sources |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bakery (boulangerie) | 3 | BOULANGERIE PATISSERIE MOUGEOT · L'OR FEVE | INSEE BPE 3 / INSEE SIRENE 3 [3,4] |
| Butcher (boucherie) | 0 | INSEE BPE 0 / INSEE SIRENE 0 [3,4] | |
| Grocery (épicerie / supérette) | 0 | INSEE BPE 0 / INSEE SIRENE 0 [3,4] | |
| Supermarket | 0 | INSEE BPE 0 / INSEE SIRENE 0 [3,4] | |
| Cheese shop (fromagerie) | 0 | INSEE SIRENE 0 [4] | |
| Fishmonger | 0 | INSEE BPE 0 / INSEE SIRENE 0 [3,4] | |
| Restaurant | 2 | LA CHOPE · EURL BRICE | INSEE BPE 2 / INSEE SIRENE 4 [3,4] |
| Café / bar | 0 | INSEE SIRENE 0 [4] | |
| Nursery school (maternelle) | 0 | INSEE BPE 0 [3] | |
| Primary school (élémentaire) | 1 | ECOLE PRIMAIRE PUBLIQUE | INSEE BPE 1 [3] |
| Collège | 0 | INSEE BPE 0 [3] | |
| GP (médecin généraliste) | 3 | JEAN FERRETTI, MÉDECIN · MARIE HECKEL, MÉDECIN · DOROTHEE WAGNER, MÉDECIN | INSEE BPE 3 [3] |
| Pharmacy | 1 | INSEE SIRENE 1 / INSEE BPE 0 [3,4] | |
| Nurse | 0 | INSEE BPE 0 [3] | |
| Dentist | 0 | INSEE BPE 0 [3] | |
| Post office / agence postale | 1 | LES FORGES AP | INSEE BPE 1 [3] |
| Library | 0 | INSEE BPE 0 [3] | |
| Cinema | 0 | INSEE BPE 0 [3] | |
| Gym / sports hall | 0 | INSEE BPE 0 [3] | |
| Swimming pool | 0 | INSEE BPE 0 [3] | |
| Bank | 0 | INSEE BPE 0 [3] | |
| Hairdresser | 1 | EJERIE | INSEE BPE 1 / INSEE SIRENE 2 [3,4] |
| Fuel station | 0 | INSEE BPE 0 / INSEE SIRENE 0 [3,4] | |
| Hotel | 0 | INSEE SIRENE 1 / INSEE BPE 0 [4] | |
| Campsite | 0 | INSEE BPE 0 / INSEE SIRENE 0 [3,4] |
Market and village life
Market day: unknown — nothing found in the datasets or on the commune website.
Trajectory
Population 1,974 (2012) → 1,776 (2023): -10 % over 10 years. [5,1]
Population 1,661 (1990) → 1,776 (2023): 6.9 % over 30 years. [6,1]
Dwellings (2023): 893, of which 1.3 % second homes and 3.5 % vacant. [7]
Access and surroundings
Which way the everyday services lie
Bakery (Les Forges): 0.1 km to the west (straight line). [8]
Food shop (Sanchey): 2.4 km to the south-west (straight line). [9]
GP (Les Forges): 0.2 km to the south (straight line). [8]
Pharmacy (Uxegney): 1.8 km to the north-west (straight line). [10]
Primary school (Les Forges): 0 km to the north-west (straight line). [8]
Climate
Where this sits nationally
An average of 11 days a year at or above 30 °C and 80 days at or below 0 °C, over 30 complete years in 1995–2024. [11]
Measured at the EPINAL weather station, 5.9 km away at 317 m; the village itself is at 371 m. [11]
The village sits 54 m above the station, so each day's reading was shifted by 5.89 °C per km of altitude before the days were counted. Expect the result to be within about 0.68 °C. [11]
Muggy days — a dew point at or above 18 °C — average 0 days a summer. [11]
Humidity measured at EPINAL, 5.9 km away at 317 m, over 30 summers. [11]
That station sits 54 m below the village, so each day's humidity was shifted by 3.63 °C per km before the muggy days were counted. [11]
An average of 926 mm of rain a year, spread over 134 days — about 6.9 mm on a day it rains. [11]
Rainfall measured at EPINAL, 5.9 km away at 317 m. Rainfall is not adjusted for altitude: unlike temperature it has no simple gradient to correct by. [11]
Uncertainties
No specific uncertainties flagged.
References
- INSEE census (RP) 2023 — 88178/2023
- INSEE density grid 2026
- INSEE BPE 2025
- INSEE SIRENE 2026-09
- INSEE census (RP) 2023 — 88178/2012
- INSEE census (RP) 2023 — 88178/1990
- INSEE census (RP) 2023 — 88178/logement/2023
- INSEE BPE 2025 — 88178
- INSEE BPE 2025 — 88439
- INSEE BPE 2025 — 88483
- Météo-France daily climatology 1995-2024
Villages like this one
Matched on size, density, second homes and which everyday shops and services are present — not on the score, so a village of the same kind that is doing better or worse shows up rather than being hidden.
| Commune | Dept | Distance | Population | Score | Band | Climate vs here |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Le Monastère | 12 | 517 km SW | 2,295 | 44.2 | Partly served | Warmer summers and milder winters.Summers feel about as humid.summer 67 % · winter 68 % · humidity 93 % |
| Frotey-lès-Vesoul | 70 | 64 km S | 1,354 | 35.6 | Few services | Warmer summers and milder winters.Summers feel more humid.summer 85 % · winter 51 % · humidity 79 % |
| Chauriat | 63 | 358 km SW | 1,805 | 38.9 | Few services | Warmer summers and milder winters.Summers feel about as humid.summer 72 % · winter 69 % · humidity 93 % |
| Niederhausbergen | 67 | 109 km NE | 1,721 | 39.4 | Few services | Warmer summers and milder winters.Summers feel more humid.summer 74 % · winter 51 % · humidity 79 % |
| Seingbouse | 57 | 109 km N | 1,722 | 34.9 | Few services | Similar summers, milder winters.Summers feel about as humid.summer 100 % · winter 70 % · humidity 93 % |
| Aiglemont | 08 | 214 km NW | 1,692 | 35.6 | Few services | Similar summers, milder winters.Summers feel about as humid.summer 100 % · winter 76 % · humidity 100 % |
Order by distance instead
| Commune | Dept | Distance | Population | Score | Band | Climate vs here |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Frotey-lès-Vesoul | 70 | 64 km S | 1,354 | 35.6 | Few services | Warmer summers and milder winters.Summers feel more humid.summer 85 % · winter 51 % · humidity 79 % |
| Niederhausbergen | 67 | 109 km NE | 1,721 | 39.4 | Few services | Warmer summers and milder winters.Summers feel more humid.summer 74 % · winter 51 % · humidity 79 % |
| Seingbouse | 57 | 109 km N | 1,722 | 34.9 | Few services | Similar summers, milder winters.Summers feel about as humid.summer 100 % · winter 70 % · humidity 93 % |
| Aiglemont | 08 | 214 km NW | 1,692 | 35.6 | Few services | Similar summers, milder winters.Summers feel about as humid.summer 100 % · winter 76 % · humidity 100 % |
| Chauriat | 63 | 358 km SW | 1,805 | 38.9 | Few services | Warmer summers and milder winters.Summers feel about as humid.summer 72 % · winter 69 % · humidity 93 % |
| Le Monastère | 12 | 517 km SW | 2,295 | 44.2 | Partly served | Warmer summers and milder winters.Summers feel about as humid.summer 67 % · winter 68 % · humidity 93 % |
Sort and compare these on the full list →
…and in much the same climate
The same match on size and services, narrowed to communes whose summers, winters and summer humidity are all close to Les Forges's. All three are required, so this section is absent for the 11.8 % of communes with no humidity station near enough to measure: two temperature axes alone cannot tell a muggy coast from a dry one.
| Commune | Dept | Distance | Population | Score | Band | Climate vs here |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dogneville | 88 | 7.3 km NE | 1,521 | 33.6 | Few services | Much the same temperatures.Summers feel about as humid.summer 95 % · winter 93 % · humidity 93 % |
| Sainte-Suzanne | 25 | 80 km S | 1,501 | 44.8 | Partly served | Much the same temperatures.Summers feel about as humid.summer 92 % · winter 89 % · humidity 86 % |
| Alsting | 57 | 120 km N | 2,480 | 34.7 | Few services | Much the same temperatures.Summers feel about as humid.summer 87 % · winter 96 % · humidity 93 % |
| Cravanche | 90 | 67 km SE | 1,942 | 42.4 | Partly served | Much the same temperatures.Summers feel about as humid.summer 97 % · winter 89 % · humidity 93 % |
| Bart | 25 | 82 km S | 1,985 | 39.5 | Few services | Much the same temperatures.Summers feel about as humid.summer 92 % · winter 89 % · humidity 86 % |
| Floing | 08 | 202 km NW | 2,270 | 34.6 | Few services | Much the same temperatures.Summers feel about as humid.summer 100 % · winter 85 % · humidity 93 % |
Elsewhere
Commune website · Wikipedia (en) ·Wikipedia (fr) · INSEE dossier complet · OpenStreetMap · Web search · Map
Permanent link: https://vivantrural.com/en/fr/88178-les-forges